A friend told me recently that there is no bit of land on earth that is not claimed by a sovereign territory. Turns out that our long standing plans to start our own island country might be more difficult than we thought.

Ironically, though, there is one spot on earth where the laws of no country apply — the Guantanamo Bay detention facility! We’re looking into it for our country — I hear it’s got a warm climate, close to nice beaches, and not too far from home in case I need to visit the folks…

In related news, AP is reporting today that an ex-Gitmo inmate spoke to the U.S. Congress to talk about his nearly five years in prison there before being released without a charge (!!!).

Among some of his comments:

I suffered from sleep deprivation, solitary confinement, religious and sexual humiliations. I was beaten multiple times.

There was no law in Guantanamo.

So how did our noble lawmakers respond? AP reports:

Facing the screen, the majority of seats for committee members sat empty. Barely half a dozen lawmakers came to listen to the former detainee, and most were unable to remember his name, with one even calling him “Mr. Karzai.”

And then there’s this gem from Congressman Dana Rohrabacher:

The first to speak after Kurnaz was finished was ranking member on the committee, Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, who expressed doubts about the testimony and recalled that the United States was “at war” and needed to protect itself even at the price of making some errors.

And when it came to the question of where ex-inmates should go when their home country refuses them, Rohrabacher said: “I would suggest that any of our allies who have criticized the US should take some of them themselves.”

Ahhh. It’s great to have civil liberties in a free country. Well, at least they don’t get tortured by having to pay into Medicare and Social Security in Gitmo, right?